Book Releases -- Just in Time for Holiday Reading

Seven days is but a fraction of your year. Specifically, it is 1/52 of the life you’ll have in 2010. It’s just a week for most of us, but you call it vacation and you’re already marking the time until you take it. Hardly anyone travels without a book, so why not make the best of your airport waiting, your down-time, your hammock-sitting, or your beach reading with a new book by your favorite author.

May and beforeYou might not know it, but a lot of your favorite authors are ready for your vacation now. Jackie Collins already has a new book out. So do Scott Turow, Chuck Palahniuk and Robert B. Parker. New releases by Gail Sheehy, Dave Barry and Jen Lancaster are already in bookstores, as are those by Queen Latifah, Emily Giffin, the duo of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, Sebastian Junger, and Kenneth C. Davis.

The kids will find a new Sandra Boynton this month and several new Brainquest activity books. There’s a new bio on Steinbrenner due in May, and a new book on the Sex in the City saga. Rounding out the month: a new John Sanford thriller, a new Matt Ridley novel, the latest in Jennifer Estep’s series, new books by Sidney Sheldon, Sandra Browne, and Mary Monroe.

June releasesSummer begins with awesome books by Clive Cussler & Justin Scott, Jeffrey Deaver, and Laurell K. Hamilton. Look for a new Anne Brashares novel and a new book by green queen Sophie Uliano. Nelson DeMille and Sherrilyn Kenyon both have new novels in June, as do Catherine Coulter and Dean Koontz.

There’s a new biography coming out on Ray Charles and one on Liz and Dick. Sonny Barger has a new memoir due in June. So does Pat Benatar, by the way, and you’ll find a new biography about Lance Armstrong, just in time for the Tour de France. Janet Evanovich presents fans with her latest novel. Danielle Steele, James Rollins, and Karen Slaughter have new books coming out, as do Richard North Patterson and Neil Gaiman.

July releasesIn July, look for new books by Nora Roberts, the duo of Iris Johansen & Roy Johansen, and ReShonda Tate Billingsly. Ayelet Waldman is coming out with a new book, as are Tess Gerritsen, Alexander McCall Smith, W. Michael Gear & Kathleen O’Neal Gear and Mary B. Morrison. Look for a new novel by Belinda Acosta and one from MaryJanice Davidson. I’m excited about the new Paco Underhill book due in July, Carrie Fisher has a new book coming up and so does Alison Weir.

August releasesSo you’re late in taking your vacation? No problem. There are still plenty of new books coming out later in the summer. How about the latest from the ever-delightful Mary Roach? How about another Sherrilyn Kenyon? You’ll find Phillippa Gregory, W.E.B. Griffin & William Butterworth, Faye Kellerman, Nancy Grace, Nevada Barr, and Ridley Pearson all with new books in August, as well as a new biography by Roseanne Cash and two new diet and exercise books coming out.

There are lots of cookbooks being released in August (just in time for end-of-summer grilling) and quite a few books for the kids (just in time for back-to-school). Beware, however, as release dates are subject to change. If you head to your favorite bookstore or library and cannot find what you want, don’t hesitate for one second to ask the librarian or bookseller what they would recommend. Better yet, ask them what book they’ve recently loved best. You can’t go wrong with a recommendation like that and – trust me - people who make their living working with books like to talk about books.